He holds the dubious distinction of having been thrown out of more ballgames than anyone in baseball history—but few managers ever won more games. Bobby Cox was born in Oklahoma in 1941 and played two years for the New York Yankees before beginning his managerial career in the minor leagues. The Atlanta Braves hired him […]
They were soul men long before the Blues Brothers. Florida native Samuel Moore and Georgian David Prater were gospel music veterans when they joined together in 1961 to form the rhythm and blues duo Sam and Dave. From 1965 to ’68 the duo worked at Stax Records in Memphis with Songwriters Isaac Hayes and David […]
“Pop music is sex and you have to hit them in the face with it.” So said the Rolling Stones’ manager as they rolled onto the music scene in 1962. They were the vanguard of the British Invasion, a new breed of pop stars influenced by Elvis and Chuck Berry. The Stones made the Beatles […]
In Savannah it’s “the book.” John Berendt’s Midnight in the Garden of Good and Evil was published in January 1994. The non-fiction account of antiques dealer Jim Williams’ trial for murdering Danny Hansford became a major bestseller. Waves of welcome tourists flooded Savannah, searching for the places and characters Berendt made famous: the Mercer House […]
She is one of the strongest women in the world, becoming a national champion and Olympic medalist while still a teenager. Cheryl Haworth was born in Savannah and began lifting weights at age 13 to improve at softball. Her father took her to a gym, where she power-cleaned 110 pounds. She trained daily and began […]
Build it and they will come. Atlanta Stadium was the city’s field of dreams, the brainchild of Mayor Ivan Allen, Jr., who promised in his 1961 mayoral campaign to bring major league sports to Atlanta. With financial support from C&S Bank president Mills B. Lane, Jr., they chose a 62-acre site that had been a […]
Was he an actor? Not hardly. Could he read cue cards and remember lines? Not so hot. Was he a Hee Haw star anyhow? Just mention BR-549. Alvin “Junior” Samples was born in Cumming, Georgia, in 1926 and spent the first 40 years of his life doing carpentry, driving race cars, and fishing. And lyin’ […]
His basketball skills were so great that he was called the “human highlight film.” Dominique Wilkins was born in 1960 in France, where his father was serving in the Air Force. After playing high school basketball in North Carolina, Wilkins came to the University of Georgia in 1979 to play for coach Hugh Durham. Wilkins […]
The man had sax appeal: tenor, alto, and soprano. James Moody, born in Savannah in 1925, began playing the saxophone at 16, despite being hard of hearing. After an Army Air Force hitch in World War II, he joined Dizzy Gillespie’s big band, mastering and helping create the complex, challenging new jazz called be-bop. His […]
He’s the only person who ever beat Gene Talmadge. Ellis Arnall was born in Newnan in 1907. He earned a degree in Greek from the University of the South, and a law degree from the University of Georgia. He was a young man on the rise: elected to the state legislature at 25 and attorney […]
